Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Nick Xenophon Team) Share this | Hansard source

I wish to briefly speak and show my support for this legislation. The Enhancing Online Safety for Children Amendment Bill makes a simple but very significant change to support Australians who are victims of non-consensual sharing of intimate images. I wish to express my deep thanks to my Nick Xenophon Team colleague Senator Skye Kakoschke-Moore whose questions during Senate estimates last year were the genesis for this bill. Sadly, the frequency of non-consensual sharing of intimate images, more commonly known as revenge porn, is increasing in Australia. According to a study recently published by RMIT University's Dr Nicola Henry, Dr Anastasia Power and Dr Asher Flynn, a whopping one in five Australians have experienced image based abuse. For Australians with disabilities, one in two report being a victim of image based abuse. One in two Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people have reported image based abuse victimisation. Although young people aged 16 to 29 years of age are more likely to be victims, it is not just young people who are victims but people of all ages. Although women and men are equally likely to report being a victim, women are more likely than men to fear for their safety due to image based abuse. The non-consensual sharing of intimate images causes real harm, not only to women but predominantly to women. It stigmatises victims, it destroys social relationships, it causes great anxiety and distress, and it leads to serious mental health issues and, despairingly and tragically, in some cases these acts have led to self-harm and suicide.

Although revenge pornography has been the focus of most of the attention, there are other more malicious ways in which non-consensual sharing of intimate images is used by perpetrators. Here I quote the RMIT study at length. For example:

... perpetrators use threats to share nude or sexual images in order to force the victim to engage in an unwanted sexual act, or prevent them from leaving the relationship or obtaining an intervention order, or to blackmail them for monetary payment, sexual favours or other related acts.

…   …   …

Threats to distribute nude or sexual images might also be made possible through the actions of thieves or computer hackers who gain access to a victim’s computer or personal device, and who are then able to download their files and use intimate images as a form of blackmail and extortion. A further example relates to the non-consensual creation of nude or sexual images, which include covert ‘upskirting’ or ‘downblousing’ in public spaces; secret recordings of the victim in private spaces engaged in a sexual act, bathing, toileting, dressing or undressing ...

The government's eSafety Women website has resources and support for women to manage the risks around technology and abuse. However, these resources are currently hosted within the Office of the Children's eSafety Commissioner's website and, quite understandably, adults seeking help around illegal or offensive online content and sharing of intimate images without consent would not ordinarily think to seek out the Office of the Children's eSafety Commissioner for assistance. That was the point made by my colleague Senator Skye Kakoschke-Moore, who stated in Senate estimates in October last year that:

… it is not just children who are victims of revenge porn. Increasingly it will be young women in their 20s, 30s and 40s that may see the name Office of the Children's eSafety Commissioner and say, 'I can't find help there,' because of the name.

That was a simple but very astute observation.

Sometimes I hear people say that if you do not want your intimate images shared then you should never take videos or photographs in the first place. I would certainly urge all Australians to be prudent. However, I also recognise that when you trust someone, usually a partner, you do not expect them to break that trust in the future. Also, as I have outlined, there are examples where there are images shared not only without the victim's consent but also without their knowledge. The perpetration of the abuse goes well beyond the cliched example of the jilted ex-lover. No-one should confuse the victims with the perpetrators, not even for a moment.

There is another statistic from the RMIT University study on image based abuse that I would like to draw to the government's attention. Four in five Australians agree it should be a crime to share sexual or nude images without permission. It should be no surprise that the level of support for criminalisation is so high. I understand that the Labor Party has an amendment and calls on the government to criminalise the non-consensual sharing of images. I want to voice the Nick Xenophon Team's support for this amendment and strongly urge the government to consider criminalising these acts. The non-consensual sharing of images causes serious harm and is not socially acceptable by any mainstream social standard. There needs to be a strong deterrent against committing such atrocious acts. These acts are not trivial. They have changed lives and, sadly for some, they have ended lives.

I also want to highlight that this bill complements another bill in the House—the Criminal Code Amendment (Protecting Minors Online) Bill 2017 or 'Carly's law'—that the Nick Xenophon Team and Sonya Ryan of the Carly Ryan Foundation have worked so hard to advance. This is about doing everything we can to keep us all safe online.

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